HARARE —
Soccer writers, coaches and referees meet in Harare on Saturday to select 11 Castle Soccer Star of the Year finalists.

Soccer fans have been playing a guessing game on the players they think may make the 11 finalists for the Castle Lager Soccer Star of the Year awards. Well, the guessing game comes to an end Saturday when the panel of selectors comes up with most outstanding footballers for the season.

Although the finalists will be made public on the day of the selection, the Soccer Star of the Year and his runners up as well as the Coach of the Year will be made secret and will only be unveiled on the day when the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League champions will be honoured.

But soccer fans, unhappy with previous selections, have called for professionalism on the part of the selectors saying they should give the fans the real soccer stars rather than players from their favourite teams.

Former Premier Soccer League Chief Executive Officer Chris Sambo, who used to co-ordinate past selections, says the selection process should be fair.

Even prominent football supporter, Chris Romario Musekiwa, says selectors should be transparent and not bring the game of football into disrepute by being regionalistic.

That aside, Dynamos supporter Reuben Muhambi thinks that Chicken Inn’s Tonderai Ndoro has been way above the rest of the pack. Caps United follower Farai Chitate agrees.

There is general consensus though that Ndoro will win the award but will face stiff competition from Dynamos’ Tawanda Muparati, the Highlanders pair of Njabulo Ncube and Tichaona Diya as well as Harare City’s Silas Songani.

The Soccer Star of the Year will take home $5,000 with the runners up getting $3,000 and $2,000 each.

The Coach of the Year will receive $3,500. The front runners are Harare City’s Bigboy Mawiwi, Highlanders Kelvin Kaindu, Dynamos’ Kalisto Pasuwa and How Mine’s Philani Ncube.